Last week the garage door torsion spring snapped. It was at least
twenty-five years old and no one lamented it's short life. So a
day or two later we got the spring replaced, and a new garage
door opener for good measure. The door is wood, single car sized,
and quite heavy. I don't have any specs, but the spring is
clearly metal, so here I am.

I was not there when the installer was, but I was told he
recommended oiling the spring with WD-40 every three months. Now,
to me "oiling" and "WD-40" are not the same thing, but I can see
people confusing them.

I can see two theories behind why you'd want to oil the spring:
1) a light coat of thin oil will keep it from rusting; and
2) as the door opens and closes, the tension put on and released
from the spring causes it to rub against itself.

With the previous install, the rollers were occaionally -- perhaps
yearly -- lubricated with white lithium grease but that's it. At
the end of the life of the old spring, it had a small amount of
rust, but I don't think it caused the spring to fail early. Nor
did the spring look like it had worn down much, so I'm not sure
the rubbing action is very significant.

So what should I plan on doing?

Elijah
------
even if this isn't metalworking, it's metal

On Nov 21, 9:11*pm, Eli the Bearded wrote:
Last week the garage door torsion spring snapped. It was at least
twenty-five years old and no one lamented it's short life. So a
day or two later we got the spring replaced, and a new garage
door opener for good measure. The door is wood, single car sized,
and quite heavy. I don't have any specs, but the spring is
clearly metal, so here I am.

I was not there when the installer was, but I was told he
recommended oiling the spring with WD-40 every three months. Now,
to me "oiling" and "WD-40" are not the same thing, but I can see
people confusing them.

I can see two theories behind why you'd want to oil the spring:
1) a light coat of thin oil will keep it from rusting; and
2) as the door opens and closes, the tension put on and released
from the spring causes it to rub against itself.

With the previous install, the rollers were occaionally -- perhaps
yearly -- lubricated with white lithium grease but that's it. At
the end of the life of the old spring, it had a small amount of
rust, but I don't think it caused the spring to fail early. Nor
did the spring look like it had worn down much, so I'm not sure
the rubbing action is very significant.

So what should I plan on doing?

Elijah
------
even if this isn't metalworking, it's metal

He wants to sell another job, so WD-40 is the recommendation. You
don't want rust, pits will start fatigue cracks in that highly
stressed spring. I don't think friction between the coils would cause
that much fretting wear. I would probably use LPS 3 for coating the
spring if I lived in a really humid area, a good grade of automotive
grease would probably work most any other place. Repeat if it shows
bare metal.

WD-40 probably wouldn't hurt that much but it's sure not either a
lubricant or a rust preventative. Maybe he's depending on the brown
crud buildup to shield things from moisture.

Stan

http://www.franksgaragedoor.com/garage-door-tips.htm
Frank reccomends WD, and call him when it needs repair. I am
guessing that the LPS3 or white lithium will last longer.

Years ago, I bought some "chain lube" stuff, with an eye
towards using on my chainsaw. It turned out to be black,
sticky, and full of moly, maybe. Totally messy. I may still
have the can of stuff, I seldom use it for any thing. Might
help with squeaky car door hinges, I may try that some time.

--
Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..


"Eli the Bearded" wrote in message
...
Last week the garage door torsion spring snapped. It was at
least
twenty-five years old and no one lamented it's short life.
So a
day or two later we got the spring replaced, and a new
garage
door opener for good measure. The door is wood, single car
sized,
and quite heavy. I don't have any specs, but the spring is
clearly metal, so here I am.

I was not there when the installer was, but I was told he
recommended oiling the spring with WD-40 every three months.
Now,
to me "oiling" and "WD-40" are not the same thing, but I can
see
people confusing them.

I can see two theories behind why you'd want to oil the
spring:
1) a light coat of thin oil will keep it from rusting; and
2) as the door opens and closes, the tension put on and
released
from the spring causes it to rub against itself.

With the previous install, the rollers were occaionally --
perhaps
yearly -- lubricated with white lithium grease but that's
it. At
the end of the life of the old spring, it had a small amount
of
rust, but I don't think it caused the spring to fail early.
Nor
did the spring look like it had worn down much, so I'm not
sure
the rubbing action is very significant.

So what should I plan on doing?

Elijah
------
even if this isn't metalworking, it's metal

On Mon, 21 Nov 2011 20:27:40 -0800, stans4 wrote:

On Nov 21, 9:11Â*pm, Eli the Bearded wrote:
Last week the garage door torsion spring snapped. It was at least
twenty-five years old and no one lamented it's short life. So a day or
two later we got the spring replaced, and a new garage door opener for
good measure. The door is wood, single car sized, and quite heavy. I
don't have any specs, but the spring is clearly metal, so here I am.

I was not there when the installer was, but I was told he recommended
oiling the spring with WD-40 every three months. Now, to me "oiling"
and "WD-40" are not the same thing, but I can see people confusing
them.

I can see two theories behind why you'd want to oil the spring: 1) a
light coat of thin oil will keep it from rusting; and 2) as the door
opens and closes, the tension put on and released from the spring
causes it to rub against itself.

With the previous install, the rollers were occaionally -- perhaps
yearly -- lubricated with white lithium grease but that's it. At the
end of the life of the old spring, it had a small amount of rust, but I
don't think it caused the spring to fail early. Nor did the spring look
like it had worn down much, so I'm not sure the rubbing action is very
significant.

So what should I plan on doing?

Elijah
------
even if this isn't metalworking, it's metal

He wants to sell another job, so WD-40 is the recommendation. You don't
want rust, pits will start fatigue cracks in that highly stressed
spring. I don't think friction between the coils would cause that much
fretting wear. I would probably use LPS 3 for coating the spring if I
lived in a really humid area, a good grade of automotive grease would
probably work most any other place. Repeat if it shows bare metal.

WD-40 probably wouldn't hurt that much but it's sure not either a
lubricant or a rust preventative. Maybe he's depending on the brown
crud buildup to shield things from moisture.

I knew a guy who used to be a systems engineer* for an aerospace
company. He did lots of interesting things. While you didn't want to
get him started on the stories of making side stick controller grips out
of condoms and RTV, he did once tell me that he did a _long_ study of
WD-40 and found out that it's a water attractant.

It's made to penetrate into cracks, even when they're wet -- so it has
stuff in it to disperse into water, and that stuff attracts water (don't
ask me what, I do not know).

I'd wipe it down with plain old oil, or if I was feeling really inspired
I'd get some of that black crap with moly in it that Christopher was
talking about, mix it with some kerosine, and wipe it on. The kero would
help it disperse over the spring, then it would evaporate leaving a
protective film behind. 30W oil stolen from the lawnmower (before you
run it _through_ the lawnmower) would probably be at least as good.

And yes, AFAIK, rust = stress risers, and stress risers = bad.


* In aerospace companies, you get the title "systems engineer" if you're
really dumb but energetic enough to be invaluable, or if you're so damn
smart that no one knows what you're doing but they know it's invaluable,
or both**.

** You have to know guys with PhD's to understand the 'both', there.

--
Tim Wescott
Control system and signal processing consulting
www.wescottdesign.com

"Tim" wrote in message
...

On Mon, 21 Nov 2011 20:27:40 -0800, stans4 wrote:

On Nov 21, 9:11 pm, Eli the Bearded wrote:
Last week the garage door torsion spring snapped. It was at least
twenty-five years old and no one lamented it's short life. So a day or
two later we got the spring replaced, and a new garage door opener for
good measure. The door is wood, single car sized, and quite heavy. I
don't have any specs, but the spring is clearly metal, so here I am.

I was not there when the installer was, but I was told he recommended
oiling the spring with WD-40 every three months. Now, to me "oiling"
and "WD-40" are not the same thing, but I can see people confusing
them.

I can see two theories behind why you'd want to oil the spring: 1) a
light coat of thin oil will keep it from rusting; and 2) as the door
opens and closes, the tension put on and released from the spring
causes it to rub against itself.

With the previous install, the rollers were occaionally -- perhaps
yearly -- lubricated with white lithium grease but that's it. At the
end of the life of the old spring, it had a small amount of rust, but I
don't think it caused the spring to fail early. Nor did the spring look
like it had worn down much, so I'm not sure the rubbing action is very
significant.

So what should I plan on doing?

Elijah
------
even if this isn't metalworking, it's metal

He wants to sell another job, so WD-40 is the recommendation. You don't
want rust, pits will start fatigue cracks in that highly stressed
spring. I don't think friction between the coils would cause that much
fretting wear. I would probably use LPS 3 for coating the spring if I
lived in a really humid area, a good grade of automotive grease would
probably work most any other place. Repeat if it shows bare metal.

WD-40 probably wouldn't hurt that much but it's sure not either a
lubricant or a rust preventative. Maybe he's depending on the brown
crud buildup to shield things from moisture.

I knew a guy who used to be a systems engineer* for an aerospace
company. He did lots of interesting things. While you didn't want to
get him started on the stories of making side stick controller grips out
of condoms and RTV, he did once tell me that he did a _long_ study of
WD-40 and found out that it's a water attractant.

It's made to penetrate into cracks, even when they're wet -- so it has
stuff in it to disperse into water, and that stuff attracts water (don't
ask me what, I do not know).

I'd wipe it down with plain old oil, or if I was feeling really inspired
I'd get some of that black crap with moly in it that Christopher was
talking about, mix it with some kerosine, and wipe it on. The kero would
help it disperse over the spring, then it would evaporate leaving a
protective film behind. 30W oil stolen from the lawnmower (before you
run it _through_ the lawnmower) would probably be at least as good.

And yes, AFAIK, rust = stress risers, and stress risers = bad.


* In aerospace companies, you get the title "systems engineer" if you're
really dumb but energetic enough to be invaluable, or if you're so damn
smart that no one knows what you're doing but they know it's invaluable,
or both**.

** You have to know guys with PhD's to understand the 'both', there.

--
Tim Wescott
Control system and signal processing consulting
www.wescottdesign.com

================================================== ============

Coincidentally, I replaced my garage-door (tension) springs last winter.
They were around 50 years old, I think. They had a pretty thick layer of
rust, which is a good place for cracks to start on a steel spring. (BTW, do
NOT skip replacing the safety cables inside of the springs!)

WD-40 does NOT "disperse into" water. It displaces water. It seems unlikely
that it "attracts" water, either. But the oil it leaves behind, when the
volatiles dry out, is just light mineral oil. It doesn't provide much
protection against rust and it's a lousy lubricant. Another BTW: oiling the
rollers with a few drops of motor oil is a lot easier than using grease, and
it will penetrate into the bearings a lot better. I do it twice a year.

I sprayed one of the LPS rust inhibitors on my springs. I'll tell you in 50
years if it held up as well as leaving them dry. g

--
Ed Huntress (who would be 113 in 50 years...)

On Nov 21, 8:11*pm, Eli the Bearded wrote:

So what should I plan on doing?

Elijah
------
even if this isn't metalworking, it's metal

Plan on replacing the spring in another 25 years. There is not much
you can do to extend the life of the spring. If you do nothing it
will last about 25 years. If you oil it or spray it with WD-40, it
will last about 25 years.

Dan

wrote in message
...
-...
-Plan on replacing the spring in another 25 years. There is not much
-you can do to extend the life of the spring. If you do nothing it
-will last about 25 years. If you oil it or spray it with WD-40, it
-will last about 25 years.
-Dan

I recently had to replace a broken rusted spring inside my twelve year old
car's hood latch that the annual spray of LPS3 didn't reach. The others were
fine.

jsw

On Nov 21, 10:37*pm, "Stormin Mormon"
wrote:
* *http://www.franksgaragedoor.com/garage-door-tips.htm
Frank reccomends WD, and call him when it needs repair. I am
guessing that the LPS3 or white lithium will last longer.

Years ago, I bought some "chain lube" stuff, with an eye
towards using on my chainsaw. It turned out to be black,
sticky, and full of moly, maybe. Totally messy. I may still
have the can of stuff, I seldom use it for any thing. Might
help with squeaky car door hinges, I may try that some time.

--
Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
*www.lds.org
.

My dad had some of that chain lube, was basically aerosol graphite
grease. Probably would work OK in this application, if a bit messy to
clean off, come the day. Worked well on the snowblower drive chain.

Stan

On Monday, November 21, 2011 8:11:45 PM UTC-8, Eli the Bearded wrote:
Last week the garage door torsion spring snapped.
....the installer...
recommended oiling the spring with WD-40 every three months.

Why fiddle with it every three months? Paint it, or wipe on
boiled linseed oil. WD-40 is a better cleaner than protector.

On Tue, 22 Nov 2011 04:11:45 +0000 (UTC), Eli the Bearded
wrote:

Last week the garage door torsion spring snapped. It was at least
twenty-five years old and no one lamented it's short life. So a
day or two later we got the spring replaced, and a new garage
door opener for good measure. The door is wood, single car sized,
and quite heavy. I don't have any specs, but the spring is
clearly metal, so here I am.

I was not there when the installer was, but I was told he
recommended oiling the spring with WD-40 every three months. Now,
to me "oiling" and "WD-40" are not the same thing, but I can see
people confusing them.

I can see two theories behind why you'd want to oil the spring:
1) a light coat of thin oil will keep it from rusting; and
2) as the door opens and closes, the tension put on and released
from the spring causes it to rub against itself.

With the previous install, the rollers were occaionally -- perhaps
yearly -- lubricated with white lithium grease but that's it. At
the end of the life of the old spring, it had a small amount of
rust, but I don't think it caused the spring to fail early. Nor
did the spring look like it had worn down much, so I'm not sure
the rubbing action is very significant.

So what should I plan on doing?

Here's what I do on my GDO springs:

There is a need to release the tension on the existing spring, so I
count the number of turns it takes to release it. I use that to
ballpark the turns on the new one/pair. I've never seen the need to
oil the spring or torsion rod, so I haven't, and I have never heard a
squeak from mine. Spray lithium would work OK, I suppose, and if I
used it, I would spray it between the coils onto the rod, perhaps
within 6" of the ends, but never on the ends, where you adjust the
spring tension. It could make it harder to retain adjustment.

I've never seen a rusted-out or rubbed-through garage door spring, of
either style, either, so I wouldn't worry much about it. They usually
fatigue.


------
even if this isn't metalworking, it's metal

Youbetcha.

--
Happiness is not a station you arrive at, but a manner of traveling.
-- Margaret Lee Runbeck